I couldn't figure out how to post the actual thread here so I provided a link to it: I hope this is acceptable, some may consider parts of it OT. http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=165122
I hadn't seen all those pictures before,great photos.That truck has come along way in along time,and you did a great job,you should be proud.
I feel like a kid on Christmas morning, you know, when you get something you have been wanting for a long time? No, not that, get your minds out of the gutter, I already did that this year. I found the source of my idle vibration problem!!! As I had mentioned, there was a chirp sound when the truck was placed in gear, every time it shifted and sometimes over bumps. Once in gear, the truck would vibrate...the hood, the fog lights, the steering column, everything. I have been poking around under the truck looking for the chirp, hoping that the chirp and the vibration would be one in the same. The big problem is that chirps come in all shapes and sizes and it takes a skilled chirp sleuth (which I am not) to out the offending problem. I checked everything I could see and then finally started on things I couldn't see and had to assume were OK. There is a spot where the passenger side exhaust pipe connects to the manifold that's directly over the right frame rail. You can't see a darn thing in there but I used a ty-rap as a feeler gauge and saw that I had maybe .040-.050" between the pipe and the rail. I had also developed an exhaust leak at that connection. I hauled up on the stud nuts and since, even with a mirror, I couldn't actually see the clearance, I decided to make more room by shimming the rear transmission mount 3/8 of an inch. I started the truck and put it in gear and voila! It idles pretty much the same in gear as it does in park! No more vibration I'm still going to try isolating by exhaust system with some new style rubber exhaust hangers to further isolate stuff from the body and frame but so far, so good. The truck is becoming more of a pleasure to drive every day. I still have a rattle in the glove box door to fix, a squeak that I think is associated with the hood latch and somewhat of a clunk on severe bumps that I have to chase down but this was the biggest bullseye I have hit yet!
Oh it's glass alright and I have the splinters to prove it Actually only the cab and the fenders are glass, the grille, chin panel, grill braces, headlight buckets, doors, running boards, hood and bed are steel and of the steel, all but the bed is original Henry stuff. The bed is a great exact steel repop from Northern Classic Trucks in MI. The fenders are from Wescotts and are top shelf The cab is from US Body in Fla and while they offer a complete body for a '40 pickup, only the cab and the doors look original enough to bother with, the nose, fenders, bed and running boards are not even close enough to use on a carnival ride, let alone a hot rod. While the cab took lots of work to make it what I wanted, it ain't rusting in places I can't see, so that justifies it for me. I have about 300 miles on the truck so far this season and I have been to several cruise nights and entered it in one show, but I didn't submit the paperwork for judging, I'm not really interested in going after any awards, I just want the truck to be the best work I know how to do. I'm still working out some of the last details and the truck is getting more and more fun to drive every week. Hopefully, this coming Sunday, I will drive it to Amherst NH for the monthly swap meet and car show. It will be the longest trip yet for the truck.
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